Solyndra Makes Cylindrical Solar Cells for Commercial Building Rooftops
- Oct 09, 2008 2:06 AM EST
- [num] Comments
California startup Solyndra developed a type of solar cell that banks on its form for success. While traditional solar panels are flat, Solyndra's are actually tubular. A semiconductor material made out of copper, indium, gallium, and selenium are placed into a tube encapsulated within another tube to make the solar cells. That means the cylindrical cells are actually thin film solar cells made into a tube.
According to Solyndra, the cylinder shape of the cells allows them to harness more solar energy because there's always a part of the cell that's facing the sun. Even the part facing the other way could absorb the light reflected off of the roof. That would mean installation of solar trackers isn't needed at all. Moreover, while panels made of flat solar cells would need to be weighed down with ballasts; these cylindrical solar cells can withstand winds up to 130 miles per hour even without support due to the cells' natural shape. Solyndra's cylindrical solar cells are especially made and optimized for commercial rooftops; the company does not have any plans to expand to development of residential solar panels for now.